Love is in the Air

by Alex Gandy

It’s a beautiful Wednesday in Maine. Blue skies, warm sun, and a cool breeze off the water. We’re in the sweet spot of retreat, where time slows, connection deepens, and love seems to fill the air.

While out on the schooner, Jody yells, “Look up at the clouds!” We do because what’s more fun than looking up in the clouds and imagining! My eye is drawn to the clouds having created the perfect letter “e” - and then I look backward from the “e,” and there it is. Love. The air is literally telling us love is present.

It was meaningful to watch people find it in the clouds and interpret the moment uniquely. It landed on each heart in its own way, as love does.

Love is always in the air; it just doesn’t always take one shape. On a Mat retreat, love can look like so many things - listening to a new friend share journal reflections during evening class, hilarious laughter during a raucous game of Scrabble, or a cozy room of yogis sitting in silence on a rainy afternoon reading, knitting, painting.

It can be easy to miss the presence of love. The world is far from perfect. Pain, fear, and anger cloud connection. But none of those things mean that the deep and abiding power of love is ever absent. With open eyes and hearts, we can find it.

I can promise you won’t see clouds that say love inside the studio. But I can promise you will feel the power of love when practicing in our community. I can promise we won’t see those same clouds on the next retreat. But I can promise if you sign up to go to Canada with us in 2027, you will find love in so many shapes and forms!

Love,

Alex

WholeGlow Face Yoga Workshop

with Debbie Simon

Experience a rejuvenating blend of natural skincare, relaxing yogic breath techniques, gentle somatic movements, and mindful relaxation with this WholeGlow Face Yoga Workshop. This session, which emphasizes self-acceptance, combines targeted facial exercises with conscious breathing to revitalize your appearance and calm your nervous system from the inside out.

Date: Saturday, July 11
Time: 1:00-2:30pm
Investment: $60; Mat Members save 15%

No refunds. Register in advance to reserve your spot. In-studio or virtual.

The Mat's 2027 Canada Retreat
with Samantha, Melanie, and Alex

Dust off your passport! We're heading to Bloom Holistic Retreat Centre on Loughborough Lake in Eastern Ontario, July 9–15, 2027.

Bloom blends natural beauty with thoughtful comfort. Light-filled accommodations, a spacious yoga studio, nourishing farm-to-table meals, and the lake right at your doorstep. Spend your days kayaking, paddleboarding, hiking forest trails, or simply breathing it all in.

Registration opens at 3:30pm on Saturday, July 11. Spots are limited with 4 single rooms and 10 double rooms.

Read all the details on our website so you're prepared to register on the 11th.

Yoga for Grief 4-week series
with Nancy Watson

All of us experience grief at some point - whether from the death of a loved one, a change in circumstances, an estrangement, or many other types of unexpected, unwelcome loss. This 4-week series will provide a compassionate space to tend to your heart and body through movement, mindfulness, and breathwork.

Date: Sundays, July 12, 19 & 26 and August 2
Time: 1:00–2:30pm
Investment: $149; Mat Members $25

Please register in advance to reserve your spot. No refunds within 2 weeks of class. Limited to 8 participants.

Lymphatic Self-Care Workshop
with Samantha Martin

Join Samantha for a hands-on workshop focused on caring for your lymphatic system, often referred to as your second circulatory system, the lymphatic system acts as your body's sanitation and recycling network.

We’ll spend time learning lymphatic massage strokes and practicing simple self-massage techniques designed to help alleviate common symptoms such as congestion or sore throat, headaches, digestive issues, and anxiety, while also supporting increased energy and mental clarity.

Date: Saturday, August 15
Time: 1:00 to 3:30pm
Investment: $70; Mat Members save 15%

No refunds. Space is limited, so register early to save your spot.

The Embodied Middle: Truth Before Transcendence and the Art of Sustainable Living and Teaching
with Nikki Myers

The Embodied Middle is a four-part immersion exploring balance as a lived capacity — biological, relational, and collective.

In uncertain times, it's tempting to reach for transcendence. This work begins somewhere else: with truth about our nervous systems, our patterns, and the conditioning that shapes how we lead and show up.

Four sessions. Discourse, embodied practice, and experiential exploration woven throughout.

When the middle is embodied, it becomes more than personal balance. It becomes relational steadiness and communal resilience.

Date: November 6-8  

Investment: $495; save $50 when you register by August 31. Mat Members save 15%.

No refunds. Space is limited, so register early to save your spot.

300-Hour Yoga Teacher Training
with Samantha, Melanie & Alex

You can uplevel your yoga teaching credentials through so many trainings out there. Why take the Mat 300? We offer the expert guest teachers you need to find your niche in the yoga world and to hone your individual voice as a teacher as well as three lead teachers - Samantha, Melanie, and Alex - who will walk with you along the way, providing the constant support you need to incorporate all your learning moving forward in your yoga career.

This training will take place one weekend per month over the course of a year from August 2026 to September 2027. Some weekends will be taught by lead teachers and others by local and renowned teachers. 

Only 4 spots remaining.

Curious if it’s the right fit? Reach out to Samantha for a one-on-one call.

Training Weekends: August 16, 2026 - September 19, 2027